What Romania Looked Like in 1990: The Harsh Reality After Communism’s Fall

The year 1990 marked the beginning of democracy in Romania, a time of social unrest and political struggles that would shape the country’s trajectory for years to come.

It was a period of newfound freedom but also deepening divisions, some of which still resonate in Romanian society today.

In the aftermath of the revolution, photographer Duccio Pugliese captured a striking visual record of Romania at this historical moment.

His photos offer a glimpse into the realities of 1990, revealing a nation in flux, caught between the remnants of its past and the promise of an uncertain future.

Bucharest, 1990.

Key moments of the year included Romania’s first free elections in May and the violent suppression of protests in Universității Square in June.

Economically, the country took its first steps away from a state-controlled system toward a market economy. The new government introduced privatization plans, allowing the first private businesses to emerge and lifting state control over the prices of certain goods.

However, these reforms faced significant resistance, even from within the ruling party, leading to economic instability in the early post-revolution years. As a result, Romania’s economic progress lagged behind other Eastern European nations.

Bucharest railways station, 1990.

After years of shortages, Romanians embraced consumer culture as imports flooded the market.

A cultural shift followed, with hundreds of newspapers and dozens of radio stations appearing almost overnight. Western literature, music, and films became widely accessible, reshaping daily life.

Adding to this wave of change, the national football team’s strong performance at the 1990 World Cup in Italy reignited a sense of national pride—something many had lost during the communist era.

Bucharest, 1990.

As Romania transitioned from communism, many workers in state-owned factories feared for their jobs, and price liberalization led to a rise in the cost of living.

However, one concern that eased for many was housing. A key law decree passed in early 1990 allowed tenants to purchase state-owned homes at exceptionally low prices, creating an unprecedented opportunity for homeownership.

Bucharest, 1990.

Apartment prices were initially set based on a standardized formula that factored in the number of bedrooms and total area.

In January 1990, for instance, a one-bedroom apartment measuring 55 square meters was priced at 138,600 old lei (ROL), roughly equivalent to 41 average monthly salaries at the time.

However, as inflation surged in the early 1990s, wages rose rapidly while apartment prices remained unchanged.

By 1994, the average salary had climbed to 142,000 old lei, exceeding the cost of the same apartment. This is how Romania became the country with the highest homeownership rate in Europe, of over 97%.

Bucharest, 1990.

Meanwhile, after years of propaganda and strict censorship, Romanians eagerly embraced newfound access to information and culture.

The media landscape transformed overnight, with hundreds of newspapers and numerous radio stations emerging.

Major publications such as Adevărul and România Liberă saw daily circulations exceeding one million copies, while many new newspapers quickly reached print runs in the hundreds of thousands.

Bucharest, 1990.

Radio stations introduced foreign music to the airwaves, while Western books and albums—often in the form of pirated cassette tapes, became widely available.

The desire for modern technology surged, with many dreaming of owning a color television and a video player.

Publishing houses flourished, bringing translations of Western literature to Romanian readers for the first time in decades.